Erisherry or Black eye beans-pumpkin in roasted coconut curry

Today I am sharing a kerala vegetarian recipe,  Erisherry. It is served as a side dish for rice in kerala sadhya ( traditional grand meal served in banana leaves)..Main ingredient of this recipe is Black eye beans..Erisherry is made with black eye beans,combined with yellow pumpkin and roasted coconut curry..Its a tasty curry..It goes well with rice, chappati, appam, dosa etc..Lets go the recipe :)

Ingredients:

To Roast:

• Coconut shredded - 1/4 cup
• Fennel seeds ( perumjeerakam) - 1 tsp
• Coconut oil - 1 tsp
• shallots ( cheriya ulli ) - 3 to 4 no.s ( optional)

For masala:

• Black Eye beans - 1 cup
• Yellow pumpkin,cubed - 1/2 cup
• Onion, sliced - 1 large
• Tomato,sliced - 1 small or 1/2 of one large tomato
• Garlic chopped - 1 tsp
• Ginger chopped - 1/2 tsp
• Green chillies, slit horizontally- 2 no.s
• Turmeric pdr - 1/4 tsp
• Coriander pdr - 1 tbsp
• Kashmiri / red chilli pdr - 1/2 tbsp

To splutter ( for tadka)

• Coconut oil - 1 tbsp
• Mustard seeds - 1 tsp
• Curry leaves - 1 sprig
• Dry red chillies,broken into halves - 2  ( optional )

Method:

• Soak the black eye beans overnight or soak in a boiled water for l hr.

• Heat a pan,roast shredded coconut in a pan at medium high heat for 5 mins, taking care not to get burn.Add one 1tsp coconut oil, to brown faster. Add fennel seeds and shallots and saute for few mins..When it turns brown ( doesn't matter if coconut leave white colour here and there), Off the flame.When it cools down, grind and make a paste of these by adding 1 tsp of water. Keep it aside.

• In a pressure cooker, heat coconut oil, add sliced onions and salt and saute well till translucent.

• Add chopped garlic,chopped ginger,green chillies and saute for few seconds..Add tomatoes and saute till mushy.

• Add all the powders and saute till raw smell disappears.. Add the yellow pumpkin and mix all together..

• Finally add beans, and pour 1 or 1 1/2  cup of water depending upon your desired quantity, mix well.

• Close the lid of pressure cooker and cook at medium flame for 2 to 3 whistles..If beans are not soaked, pressure cook for 6 to 7 whistles..

• Off the flame..and wait till the pressure releases..Slightly mash the pumpkin with the back of the ladle..

• Add roasted coconut paste and saute well..Taste and add salt..Keep it in low flame..when it comes one boil,off the flame.

• In another pan,heat coconut oil at medium flame and add mustard seeds.

•  When it crackles, reduce the flame to low and add curry leaves and broken red dry chillies and saute for few sec..Off the flame.

• Immediately add mustard tadka into the beans curry and close the lid of pressure cooker..let it infuse flavour for few mins..

• Serve it with rice,chappati, appam etc..